Pork Tenderloin Stir-Fry

     About a week before I started this blog, I made a killer braised pork loin. While the middle of the loin has a great shape to it, the ends tend to taper off a bit. I like to remove them for later use. Later came today.

     I decided to go for stir-fry with the leftover pork. All I needed was a little help from some vegetables and a few odds and ends. As we all know, a stir-fry can go in several directions - this is the one I took tonight.

     It's easy to put together, so try it out. At this point, it's worth noting that I won't be putting together many pretentious, highbrow recipes that warrant a spot on the menu of a Michelin-starred restaurant (maybe here and there if I can figure one out). This is here to simply learn and share the fruits of our labor. I don't have an Italian mama, nor did I bring traditional family recipes with me when my family immigrated here from Mexico. I'm from a long line of southerners that cooked to survive - not entertain. Still, there's plenty of no-frills recipes enough to keep us from reaching for the Chinese menu stuck between the magnet and the refrigerator.

     Okay, enough of the overused hyphens! On to the recipe!

Pork Tenderloin
10-12 oz. pork tenderloin, cut into about 1 inch pieces
1 tbsp. vegetable shortening
kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper (to taste)

Vegetables and Such
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cloves of garlic
1 large or 2 small carrots, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 small can of bamboo shoots
1/2 - 2/3 c. mushrooms, yeah...chopped
1/2 c. chicken or beef broth
1 tbsp. Thai peanut sauce
pinch of anise seed and chopped cilantro
kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper (to taste)

Oodles of Noodles
olive oil
1/3 - 1/2 package of rice noodles
1 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper (to taste)

Are ya ready?

     Look, this is easy stuff here. You know that. We all make stir-fry. I happen to like the not-so-heavy taste of this one. The peanut sauce goes a long way in terms of taste without adding a lot of thick, saucy stuff to it. Let's get to it!

     Bring enough water to boil for the noodles. It's like cooking vermicelli. In fact, you can use vermicelli if you want, but I really like these rice noodles. They will only take about 5 minutes to cook, but the starch comes out of them into the water, so strain and rinse them and return them to cold water to keep them from sticking.

     Bring a skillet to medium heat, and melt down your shortening (or olive oil if you have an aversion to Crisco). Brown your pork and season with the salt and pepper. Transfer the pork to a bowl just before cooked through.

     In the same skillet, toast the garlic for about a minute (adding a bit of vegetable oil if necessary), then add the carrots, celery, onion, and bamboo shoots. When the vegetables get a bit soft, add in the mushrooms, broth, and pork. Bring the mixture to a slow boil, and add the peanut sauce, anise seed, and cilantro. Give it a stir, and it's smooth sailing from here! Just add salt and pepper to your liking.

     In a separate skillet, bring a bit of olive oil to medium to medium-low heat, and add the strained noodles and soy sauce. As usual, add salt and pepper to taste. Toss them around until they reach the desired temperature. Now you're ready to go!

     Grab a shallow bowl, and top the noodles with the pork and vegetable mixture. I like to garnish this one with peanuts, but the wife won't let me! The peanut sauce and anise seed are the stars of the show here, so feel free to swap out whatever you want. After all, a stir-fry is a blank canvas - grab your paintbrush!

     Actually, grab your chopsticks, and enjoy!